


Replacement

by ItsyaboiLeo



Category: DCU
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bat Family, Family Dynamics, Found Family, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Out of Character, Platonic Relationships, Superheroes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-02-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:29:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22323358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsyaboiLeo/pseuds/ItsyaboiLeo
Summary: Following Damian Wayne's death (again), Batman realized that he needed a new Robin. The twelve-year-old he met yesterday should do the trick.
Relationships: Bruce Wayne & OC, Jason Todd & OC, Tim Drake & OC
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

It always rained in Gotham, no matter the season, the time, the necessary aesthetic, so why couldn’t it rain just this once, Bruce Wayne thought as he lowered his son into his grave in the gentle sunlight. Bruce, Dick, Jason, and Tim all held a rope as the coffin came to rest at the bottom, and the rest of the family watched from the sidelines. They stood quietly in solidarity as each family member stood forward to say something.   
“He was a brilliant kid, I’m really gonna miss him.”  
“I loved him so much...so much…”  
“May he find joy in the afterlife. Maybe they have katanas or something for him to play with.”  
On the other side of a cemetery sat a girl of twelve and a half with a bundle of roses.  
“Hey mom, hey dad...it’s been a while, huh? I’m on the Honour Roll, so yeah. Just saw Jack and Sadie’s graves too, so don’t worry about hogging the attention. Uh, uncle Gary and them are fine. They watch a lot of TV and I’m not allowed to, but that’s okay because I always do the crossword instead. Hey, speaking of crosswords, I’m stuck on this really hard one from today’s newspaper. Either of you know what agastopia is?” She didn’t get an answer. She walked to work in solitude, muttering to herself and kicking cans she passed by until she arrived at a shady diner too close to Crime Alley for her comfort. Here, she spent a few hours cleaning dishes and pocketed the ten dollars the owner slipped her for dinner money.  
“Take care of yourself, kid,” he muttered to her. “and don’t go gettin’ in no trouble now, ya hear?”  
“Sure thing Frank. See you tomorrow.” It was almost eight now, and her next stop was a grocery store down the road so she could grab some microwaveable meal for dinner. She settled for a lasagna TV dinner, which she absolutely was not allowed to eat in front of the TV, and grabbed an emergency tin of tomato soup in case she ended up homeless or something. Lastly, she quietly scaled the seven flights of stairs leading to her uncle’s apartment, where he lived with his wife and two kids. Nobody was home at the moment though, so she microwaved her dinner and headed to her room, if you could call it that. A closet with a bed and a box for clothes hardly classified as dignified living, but hey, who was she to complain? So she sat on her floor, ate her lasagna, and did her homework in complete silence lest her family showed up. When they still weren’t back by nine thirty, she brought her plate to the kitchen and washed it before slipping out on the balcony, only to find someone she never thought she’d meet. “Batman?” He nearly fell off the gargoyle he was perched on at the sound of her voice. “Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you. Hey, are you...are you okay?” The man was clearly crying, and her soft heart melted a little more at the sight of it.  
“I’m Batman, I’m always fine.”  
“Liar liar. You need some water or something?”  
“No.”  
“Okay...well, if you need anything, I’m inside. Take care.” She stood by the door and watched him brood until it started to rain. She grabbed an umbrella from the rack by the door and brought it out to him. “Come on, sir, you can’t be sitting out here without at least an umbrella.” He begrudgingly accepted it and she took a seat on the railing beside him. “What’s up?”  
“I buried my son today.” The girl’s heart leapt into her throat.  
“Oh my god...I’m so sorry to hear that.” She adjusted herself to face him better and found herself slipping off the railing.  
“Shit, kid!” Batman yelled as he reached out to help her and abruptly stopped at the sight of the girl in midair, looking dishevelled, but otherwise fine.  
“Sorry Mister Batman sir, didn’t mean to scare you. I’m okay.” She let herself float a bit higher and climb back next to the man. “Anyway, do you wanna talk about it?”  
“No. I want to be distracted.”  
“Oh, I’m good at that! People tell me I’m distracting all the time.” She caught his weak smile flutter across his face, and he didn't have the heart to tell her he didn't mean it that way.  
“What’s your name kid?”  
“Lydia French, but everyone calls me Lala, unless they’re mad at me or something. No need to ask who you are Mister Dark Knight.” Batman allowed Lala to chatter for longer than he would have deemed necessary about her favourite classes, colours, hobbies, and animals. “But I think my favourite animal is a fox. They’re really cute and I love them. Let me guess, your favourite animal is a bat?”  
“I’m scared of bats.”  
“Oh...well, I guess that makes sense. Using your fear to make you stronger. Nice. Oh damn!” Lala jumped to her feet, eyes blown. “My family’s back and they’ll be super mad if they see me drenched like this. See ya Batman!” And without waiting for a reply, she rushed inside to her room, leaving a lonely Batman and a red umbrella on the balcony.

“Lydia! Where’s my coat,” demanded Ophelia French. Lala wasn’t surprised that she jumped to conclusions like that. Anything that went wrong in the house was automatically her fault.  
“I haven’t seen it sorry.”  
“You’re so goddamn useless.” She didn’t reply, simply shrugging on her backpack and heading to school, trying desperately to avoid everyone. She worked through Math, English, and Science, stomached her lunch of what was supposed to be a sandwich and an apple, and put up with Gym, Social Studies, and Home Economics. Monday Home Ec was undoubtedly her favourite class, because they cooked and that meant she wouldn’t have to buy dinner. Today had been spaghetti bolognese, and she was ecstatic to have saved ten bucks to put aside for weekend lunches, emergencies, and treats. A few months earlier she had managed to save enough to buy a copy of Treasure Island, and now she was saving up for a Sherlock Holmes novel. There was nothing Lala loved like a good book. After work, she headed back to her house and spotted a box on the balcony. It had her name on it. Cautiously, she opened the box, careful not to disturb anyone who might be home, and found a red and green outfit in it.  
“Wow, okay, not weird at all.” She grabbed the note and read over it.  
Dear Lala-  
I need a Robin. Meet me near Crime Alley tonight at nine if you’re interested. Wear the suit I sent.  
-Sincerely, Batman.  
Lala wasn’t convinced. Not even close. This was way too weird, but as she inspected the clothes, she noticed that it was better than any costume she had found at Walmart. It came complete with gadgets like a stick that shocked people and a watch thing that had heaps of apps and stuff. Finally, as she reached the bottom of the box, she uncovered a red umbrella. This was proof enough for her that he was serious, so on the next question: would she do it? Lol. Of course she would. Come on, if her parents heard that she was offered a position as Robin with her bomb ass superpowers, they’d crawl out of the grave, grab her by the shoulders, and give her an earful like never before. So that’s how Lala ended up dressing in her new Robin suit and carefully, quietly, levitating out the living room window and into the night. She floated over Gotham, observing the city from above. It looked beautiful from just above the skyline, and she knew that the mere presence of Batman helped it to retain a somewhat inhabitable standard. She perched on a gargoyle I overlooking the alley where Thomas and Martha Wayne were murdered all those years ago, and her eyes scanned the area.  
“Robin.” She managed not to flinch at Batman’s gravelly voice, instead remaining calm and replying to him.  
“Hey Batman.” She turned to face him, rising to her full height so she was at eye level with the man’s collarbone. “What’s up?”  
“I’m glad to see you. Follow me, we’re going to the Batmobile kid.”  
“Yessir.” She skipped after him, her braid smacking against her back. She looked so natural in the Batmobile, Bruce thought, like she was born to be there with her feet on the dashboard.  
“We’ve got a drug bust to start with, just a small ring down by the docks. Reckon you can handle that?”  
“Sure can.”  
“Good. I’m gonna need a run down on your powers.” Oh, Lala was more than happy to explain.  
“Gravity manipulation. I can control the force of gravity on myself as well as on anything I touch. So if I manage to touch someone I’m fighting, I could send them to the upper atmosphere or stick them to the ground. Gravity’s my bitch!” She could have sworn he smiled, but he regained his composure before she could be sure.  
“Watch your language.” They whisked through the streets as the traffic thinned, the gleam of the dock lights clear in the darkness. “Alright, kid, go show ‘em who’s boss.” The roof of the car opened above them, and Lala flung herself into the night sky.


	2. Chapter 2

Batman wasn’t sure what he expected, but this? This wasn’t it. He was relying on a blank slate, an untouched lump of clay, and had once again been reminded that the world doesn’t revolve around him. The smugglers got their asses kicked. Hard. She’d been shot at, stabbed, and thrown off buildings, but she was still smiling at the end of the night. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t proud and also absolutely terrified. It was nearly daybreak when he dropped the kid off at her house, and she had managed to incapacitate no less than thirty criminals. Kid after his own heart. Of course, there were about a dozen other kids who he loved, and every single one of them was waiting in his study to kick his ass.  
“Bruce,” Dick started, leaning against a window with a worried look, “you couldn’t have waited until Damian’s blood ran cold to replace him?”  
“Listen, old man, at least pretend to care about your Robins, will ya,” Jason continued, feet on the table and cigarette in hand. One by one, every person he considered family took turns criticizing him. Tim, Cass, Stephanie, Alfred, Duke, Selina, Barbara, Kate, they all told him he was too quick to move on. And what was his defense?  
“I needed a Robin.” His Robin was about fifteen miles away, restless and excited, sticking Paw Patrol bandaids on her knees. She scrawled words in her notebook, recording her night’s adventures for future reminiscing purposes. This was the best day of her life by a long shot. The lightbulb over her head flickered and threatened to burst, and Lala tensed, tucking her knees up to her chest.  
“It’s okay, Lala, just a bad bulb. It’s okay.” With a sharp noise, the light went out and she began to whimper. Okay, the best few hours maybe. She’d never admit it out loud, especially not in front of Batman, but she was deathly afraid of the dark. For a second she considered going into the living room, before deciding she’d really rather be killed by the shadow creatures than go out there. So she squeezed her eyes closed and fell into a restless sleep.

“Robin, status report on the current whereabouts of the Scarecrow?”  
“Still no news boss, I’ll contact you immediately if I get anything.”  
“Don’t call me boss.” He hung up with that, leaving Lala to carry on with the stakeout. She was perched on a tall building in central Gotham for her biggest job so far, keeping an eye out for Scarecrow while the kids trick or treated, enjoying a novelty she never had. At least she enjoyed the discount chocolate bars. Still, her mind wasn’t completely focused on the job at hand. Batman had been behaving weird recently. As in, weirder than usual. She had only been working for him for about a month, mostly relatively minor crimes, but she had a pretty good grasp on his whole ‘edgy’ thing he had going on. He had been ruder the last few days, though, more violent and less patient. She forced herself out of her thoughts at the sight of a thick mist protruding from the sewer grates. Goddammit, he must have gotten past Batman, who was guarding Arkham Asylum. She fumbled for her batphone, dialing her boss.  
“Hey, he’s out. I can see the fear-gas, I’ll start moving the civilians away from it.” No response. Whatever. The other vigilantes like Red Robin and Batwoman should be there soon. Lala had only met the others once or twice, and they didn’t seem to like her very much. Even Nightwing, mister charmer, had barely managed to keep it cordial with her throughout the three hours they spent chasing down Two-Face a few days earlier. She backed away from the edge of the building and began to sprint, leaping off and plummeting towards the civilians, cringing at the feeling in her stomach as she just barely managed to float at the last second. “Ladies and gentlemen, please clear the area! There is fear-gas present, so please take one of these.” She began handing out collapsable gas masks to the people nearby, ushering them into the nearby buildings. Once the streets were empty, she realized none of the others had arrived yet. Batman must have contacted them and tracked Scarecrow. She should check if they needed any help. “Hey, it’s Robin, the main streets are clear. Anyone need any backup?” Once again, nobody answered. Her anxiety was beginning to coil tighter in her chest. What if they were hurt? Captured and debilitated? So she pried a manhole out of its place and crawled into a pit of stench and crap, making sure her gasmask was secure. She made her way through the fear-gas, eventually realizing that the thicker it was, the closer Scarecrow must be. Her eyes pricked painfully as the gas began to completely engulf her. “Batman? Batman, where are you?” She told herself that it was fine. He was probably helping with evacuations. It was at that moment, while she was sneaking through the labyrinth of manure, that her mask was ripped from her face and she inhaled a lungful of gas. She swiped at her offender before the fear-gas could overtake her mind, fingers brushing across none other than the Scarecrow himself. He found himself pinned to the ground, with Robin desperately trying to pry the gas canisters from his hands. She shot them straight to the ceiling and cuffed the Scarecrow before she completely lost her grip on reality, finding herself blacking out from the gas.  
It was pitch black. Petrol fumes filled her lungs, fire burned at her back, and she had no way to escape. She didn’t open her eyes. She couldn’t, not when she knew exactly what she’d find. It had been seven years but the sight of her parents, little sister, and big brother sprayed all over the car was still fresh in her mind. It had been a car crash, commonplace and unable to be avenged. She’d spent three hours buckled and locked in, useless and whimpering as her family rotted beside her and the flames lapped at her skin. Someone would come. Some stranger had pulled her from the car and called for help all those years ago, but that couldn’t make up for the sights she had already seen.  
“Robin.” Lala lurched to life in the here and now, a gas mask firmly clasped to her face. “Hey, it’s okay, can you stand?” The world came into focus and Batwoman was staring down at her. Okay Robin, time to keep going. She pulled herself to her feet, only stumbling a little.  
“Yeah...yeah, I’m okay.”  
‘Good. You take the canisters and I’ll carry out the Scarecrow, Red Robin’s waiting above ground with the police.”  
“On it.” She released the Scarecrow from her hold so Batwoman could take him and dropped the gas into her own hands. The pair made their way to an open grate in the midst of a police set up. Red Robin was with the cops, fiddling with his device thing, but Batman was nowhere to be seen. A few officers approached the girls, escorting Scarecrow into an Arkham Asylum van and confiscating the fear-gas, treating Robin with more respect than she had ever experienced. After an hour of hustle and bustle, the trio of heroes was left alone. Red Robin was the first to speak up.  
“Anyone seen Batman tonight?” The girls shook their heads.  
“He called me at about ten for an update, but that’s all I’ve heard from him,” Lala said.  
“Yeah,” Batwoman agreed, “I haven’t seen him at all but he called me at about the same time.” They stood in silence for a minute and eventually dispersed, heading away from the assembly point and towards wherever they were needed next.

It took Lala two hours to find Batman, excluding the half a dozen times she had to go save people. To nobody’s surprise, he was perched on a gargoyle, watching the lightning strikes which gave her the heebie-jeebies.  
“Batman?” His badass brooding moment was cut short by Lala settling down next to him. “Are you okay? I’m worried about-”  
“I’m fine. Status report?” She stifled a sigh and stepped back into her line.  
“Scarecrow was apprehended, no civilian casualties.” Well, maybe one if Lydia French could be considered a civilian.  
“Good. Go home, kid. You earned a nap.” And she was in no state to argue. She flittled over the city and crept into her family’s apartment, careful not to wake anyone. Her bedroom was just as she had left it, a little messy and full of emergency supplies, her half-forgotten homework scattered across her bed. She packed away her uniform, taking one last glance at her watch just in case she had missed a notification or something. Sure enough, something was off about it, but she couldn’t pin down what it was. She mulled it over as she tugged on her pajamas.  
“Wait a second...” She scrolled through her contacts, ignoring the fact that only one arm had gotten through the shirt sleeve. Agent A, Batgirl, Batman, Batwoman, Black Bat, Red Hood, Red Robin, Signal, Spoiler... “Where’s Nightwing?”

Bruce Wayne was a mess. More so than usual. His hands shook as he read over the last text that he had received from his oldest son, his sobs filling the Batcave.  
‘Bruce,  
I can’t do this anymore. Throwing away your Robins like they’re worthless, replacing them without a second thought. I’m not coming back, not as Nightwing or Dick. Tell the others it’s not their fault, especially Robin. This isn’t about her, it’s about you. Don’t text me back or call me.  
-Richard Grayson’  
Yeah. A real fucking mess. Bruce had chosen Lala partially because she reminded him so much of Dick, he’d even chosen his logo for her shirt. Not only had he been effectively disowned by his son, but he had also failed his third son, his cousin, and his protegee by sitting around feeling sorry for himself while they fought his battle. Kate had told him exactly what happened to Lala in the sewer, how she was choking on fear gas and sickly pale when she found her. Bruce decided there and then that he couldn’t tell this girl who he was. Batman had already failed her, Bruce Wayne hadn’t and wasn’t going to. He poured himself a glass of whiskey, much to Alfred’s displeasure.  
“Master Wayne, if you drink that, I’m going to kick your bloody arse.”  
“Let a man wallow in self-pity, will you?”  
“I’ve let you wallow in self-pity for twenty-five years, sir, you don’t get to lecture me on this.” He threw the drink back anyway.


	3. Chapter 3

Lala spent the next day, a Sunday, skipping stones by a river and drinking a milkshake. Her jacket had torn the previous Winter after an unfortunate incident involving fishing rods and ice, so she was probably on the brink of death by hypothermia, but did she care? Yes. She ducked into a nearby thrift store and grabbed the cheapest sweater and scarf she could find, digging some spare change from her pocket and bundling up before she even left the store. The BatChat had been oddly quiet, enough so that Lala had decided to head out for a few hours for a snack and a walk. The billboards situated all over the city were playing a live interview with none other than Bruce Wayne, Gotham’s golden child, and Lala settled into a park bench to watch. The woman across from him looked like her face was about to split down the middle from all that smiling.  
“Mister Wayne, could you tell us a bit about your latest project? I understand that you’re converting an abandoned warehouse into a homeless shelter.”  
“That’s right, Shelly.” They went on for longer than was probably necessary about his good deeds, until they were interrupted by his buzzing watch, which he promptly shut off. Her own watch did the exact same thing. “Sorry about that, Shelly. Go on.” Lala rushed back to her family’s apartment and tugged on her suit to go stop the Joker from blowing up Arkham Asylum. She whizzed across town, skidding to a halt beside Batgirl and Red Robin.  
“Robin, good. I need you to track down these four locations, they’re all rigged with bombs. I’ll tell you how to deactivate them all.” Red Robin sent her a map of the building and she was off. First stop was an explosive rigged near a series of cells, with their inhabitants screaming bloody murder at Robin.  
“Alright Red Robin, this one’s at three minutes seventeen seconds.”  
“Get your scissors and cut the wires in this sequence; green, black, blue.”  
“Green, black, blue. Done.”  
“Quick, the next is just up ahead.” She finished two more with forty seconds to go.  
“I’m at the last one.” No reply. “Red Robin, I’m at the last location, what’s the order? Red Robin? Hello?” There was nothing but static. Robin had to think fast. These bombs were supposed to be big enough for just one to finish the job at hand, and she resorted to prying it out of the ground, a difficult feat considering the fact that it was bolted to the concrete. She only had twenty seconds by the time it was free, so she flung herself up the flights of stairs towards the roof and hurled the bomb into the air, ducking to get away before it detonated, hoping her powers would be strong enough to not let it kill her.   
The sound alone left her deaf for a few minutes. The dust in her eyes wasn’t helping either, nor was the fact that her cape was on fire. Blood was dripping from her forehead, and that didn’t seem like the worst injury she sustained. Her communicator crackled to life.  
“Robin! Holy shit, are you okay?” She couldn’t hear a thing and resolved to slowly float down to where the others were waiting. Her legs gave out as soon as she touched down. A paramedic helped her as she stumbled towards Red Robin, all the noise blurring together into white noise. He said something, waving his hand in front of her face, trying to get her attention.  
“Red?” She couldn’t catch his reply. He lifted her in a fireman’s hold and carried her over to his motorbike, which she struggled to stay on as he drove them to the Batcave. She blacked out almost immediately once they had arrived.  
“Goddammit, Bruce, where are you?” He laid her on a medical table, assessing her injuries.  
“AB-negative. Of fucking course she’s AB-negative! Couldn’t have been O-pos. Why didn’t Bruce get her some good blood?” His communicator went off, Batgirl was calling. “What’s up?”  
“I got the Joker, where’s Robin?”  
“Right here. She’s not good. Where’s Batman?”  
“That interview.” Goddammit.  
“Alright. You take care of things over there, and I’ll try to get this kid on her feet.” He hung up and turned back to Lala. “Okay, I’m gonna take your mask off, alright?” She couldn’t hear him, but he felt like he should warn her anyway. He pried her mask off and found just a few scratches. “You’re gonna be okay, I promise.”

Barbara met Bruce right outside the broadcast building.  
“Hey Barbara, what’s-”  
“Your protegee has been compromised. Get in the car.” She shoved him in the passenger seat and sped off to Wayne manor. “That summons you rejected? Joker tried to blow up Arkham. The kid nearly died defusing the bombs and you couldn’t even leave your interview? Last night you couldn’t even call while she was fighting Scarecrow!”  
“Don’t have a go at me, Babs.” They pulled up at Wayne manor and headed straight to the Batcave where Tim was frantically ranting at Alfred, who was trying to wake up Lala. “Lala. Lala, Lydia? Hey, it’s Batman. Can you hear me?” Her eyes fluttered a little, adjusting to the bright lights.  
“Loud and clear, boss.” The others breathed sighs of relief.  
“God, you nearly gave me a heart attack,” Red Robin said.  
“Sorry Red.” She tried to sit up, only to be shoved back down by Alfred.  
“Miss Robin, I must request that you stay right there. Butler’s orders.” He plumped the pillow and let her sink back.  
“Wait!” Now completely conscious, Lala sat bolt upright, eyes locked on Batman. “You’re Bruce Wayne? Batman? Seriously?” All eyes were now on Bruce who looked a bit skittish.  
“Really?” Barbara asked. “You didn’t tell her? It’s been a month!.”  
“I was waiting for the right time.” The attention was brought back to Lala as she went deathly pale, slumping back into the medicare bed.  
“Well, Bruce,” Red Robin said, “can you let us finish up with...Lydia? Signal should be here with the fresh blood for a transfusion.” Bruce decided it would be a little hypocritical to tell them that she preferred Lala, given the evening’s events, so he backed off.  
“Hey guys, I got the AB neg.” They’d been so caught up they didn’t even notice Signal had already slipped in, clutching a pint of blood.  
“Duke, good, bring it over.”

Nightwing wasn’t the last vigilante to disappear from Robin’s contacts. She was curled up on her bed drinking a glass of water and reading a book about two weeks after the Joker incident, having a genuinely nice time, when she got a text from the BatChat.  
Batman: Code white, I need everyone at the cave ASAP, civilian wear.  
Batwoman: On my way  
Red Robin: Coming  
Robin was new to the whole texting thing, so she just typed an OK and jumped out of bed. It was kind of weird that they weren’t wearing uniforms but what was she gonna do? Say no? She slipped quietly out of her house and headed towards Wayne Manor, trying to attract as little attention as possible until she made her way into the cave after twenty minutes of running and maaaaaybe a little flying.  
“Batman, I’m here.” He almost got whiplash as he turned to face Lala, doing absolutely nothing to mask his disappointment with seeing her.  
“Oh, of course, Lala…” He couldn’t admit it aloud, not in front of everyone else, but he hadn’t expected that Robin. No, he was hoping for Dick, or Damian, or even Jason, even though he knew it was stupid. Lala herself knew that Red Hood’s contact had been wiped a few days earlier, and could only assume that he had done the same thing as Nightwing, though she hadn’t quite worked out what that thing was. She had guessed that Bruce was missing his sons, with only one still in contact with him. “I don’t think we actually need your help right now, it’s civilian stuff. You can go home, spend time with your family. Sorry for disturbing you.”  
“Oh...okay. Well, see you later.” She quietly shot out of the building and scurried back to her room, where Sherlock and Watson were waiting. After checking her money box, Lala nearly had a heart attack. She’d had so little time to work that she’d been living off of her stockpiled food which had run out the day before, and now? She was down to two pennies. “Oh my god, nonono.” She rummaged through every pocket she owned, the cardboard box, and came up with nothing. It was too late to head to the diner, so she’d have to go the next day. They always made sure she had enough money for food, and exchanged ten dollars for two hours of work, but it was well past 8 o’clock. She’d just have to...god, she didn’t know. Maybe her cousin, Claudius, would have some junk food in his room, but she was way too scared to try to get it. As for the kitchen, she might as well break into the Louvre and steal the Mona Lisa. So she curled up and tried to ignore her hunger pangs as she drifted into a restless sleep, full of nightmares and pain.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Bruce? That kid just came the whole fucking way here and you don’t even thank her for the effort? I mean, if you don’t want her at a family meeting about the wedding, maybe use the normal group chat.” Tim had been berating Bruce since he had unceremoniously dismissed her a few minutes earlier. “That girl’s put herself on the front line for you too many times for it to be remotely okay to just...brush her off! I understand you’re upset about the others, I am too, but that kid’s your responsibility too now, and you’re not allowed to treat her like she doesn’t matter.”  
“Tim, she’s just a stand-in until Damian comes back.” And Tim just had to take a minute to stand there and stare, completely dumbfounded.  
“Does she know that?”  
“....No.” Tim grabbed Bruce by the collar and stared him straight in the eyes.  
“She fights your battles. She wears the suit. She comes running at your call. I don’t care if she’s a stand-in, old man, she’s part of the team. Next time you see her, apologize. Talk. I know you’re awful at communication and stuff but that kid is sticking her neck out for you every day, so I’m sure you can make an exception just this once.” And he left without another word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this far! More coming.


	4. Chapter 4

Lala’s day at school sucked. More than usual. The school’s potato salad did nothing to help her hunger pains, a kid threw her bag in the trash, and she’d been worrying about Batman all day. The worst part? She’d been obsessively checking her watch to make sure none of the others disappeared. Work hadn’t been much better, and she spent three hours cleaning for a measly fifteen dollars, not that she was the one complaining. She went to some dinky store nearby, stocked up on a week’s worth of boxed meals, and shoveled down a box of Prego marinara and sausage pasta before her vigilante shift started. Tonight she’d be patrolling near the bank, so she’d be on high alert until further notice. Of course, since none of the bats could even imagine doing something without a little drama, the man himself appeared in front of her with a crack of lightning and a rumble of thunder.  
“Hey boss.”  
“You really don’t seem to understand the meaning of ‘aesthetic’ kid. Listen I have something to talk to you about.” This was it. She was fired. Goodbye Robin, hello crippling depression “I need to apologize. Since Nightwing dropped off the map I’ve been neglecting my duties to Gotham and to you, and that’s put you in danger multiple times. Scarecrow, the Joker, all of it. I promise that I’ll put my personal life aside for Gotham, and for you, just as I’ve done before.”  
“Oh man, boss, it’s okay. Don’t even worry about it. Seriously, I was worried about you so don’t worry about me.” She was flustered, stumbling a little as she awkwardly gave him a pat on the bicep. He flinched away and was gone before she even knew what had really happened. So she perched on the edge of the roof and kept an eye out for trouble, but her mind was elsewhere. Specifically, somewhere about fifteen miles away and deep underground, where Batman had probably run off to.

He kept his promise. He answered every phone call Lala made, advised her when she needed it, and even took her to get McDonald's one day at midnight.  
“So,” he said through his burger, “what’s the best fast food place?”  
“Subway, hands down. It’s customizable, Bats, what more could you ask for?”  
“Something edible.”  
“Hey!”  
“Kidding.” Of course. He had made a real effort to be nicer towards her lately, like a mentor instead of some old bastard who threw her into battles which he ran from. In fact, if she hadn’t known better, she might think he was happy. Alas, her contacts list had dwindled again, and Spoiler and Black Bat had disappeared, so his facade was obviously just that. Whatever, she’d leave the worrying for later. She was ready to complete a drug bust, and the shipment of Rohypnol had just arrived at the docks. As the men began to pack in into their van, she stood up straight and leaped off the roof.  
“Good evening gentlemen! Thank you for your extraction of that contraband, I’ll be taking it from here!” They didn’t like that, so Robin just beat them up and called the cops. She preened under all the attention and praise she was getting from the police, and returned to the Bat Cave with some spring in her step. She was immediately hit in the face with a duffel bag.  
“Intergalactic emergency, you’re helping the Justice League to defeat a villainous alien called Morzal, got it?” He ushered her into the Bat Plane without any more of an explanation.  
“Got it.” She didn’t got it. In fact, she was so far from gotting it that she nearly fainted when Superman shook her hand.  
“And you must be miss Lala who I’ve heard so much about-”  
“Clark-”  
“It’s an honour to meet you.” Her face lit up, eyes bright and full of childlike wonder.  
“Wow, Superman! Yeah, hi, that’s me!” Batman couldn’t bring himself to be too grumpy at the sight of Lala’s smile. Wonder Woman and the Flash were also coming, and Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter were on standby. Robin was bouncing on the balls of her feet in the presence of her childhood heroes. As the days passed, she sat quietly in the back, pinching herself every so often to make sure this wasn’t some elaborate dream her brain had concocted to drive her nuts. Batman had thankfully packed stuff for her to do, including a Nintendo 3DS, complete with various Pokemon, Zelda, and Mario games, so she wouldn’t lose her mind over the course of the eight-day flight. An early Christmas present, he said. Soon enough, however, she was cruelly reminded that the job of a Robin wasn’t to sit around and look cool and sophisticated. Wonder Woman took a seat beside her and began to explain the situation.  
“You must be Lala, Bruce talks about you often.” She beamed so brightly at that revelation. “So, Morzal is currently holding a planetary system hostage. They have a population of over ten billion between the twelve planets, and they’re relying on us to save them, got it?”  
“Got it.”  
“Good. You’ll be infiltrating their base and taking out as many officials and guards before the four of us go in to take Morzal himself. We’d do it ourselves, but we need someone inconspicuous to carry out the initial infiltration, and you should be able to blend in. Most of Morzal’s henchmen are about the same size as you, so I need you to put this on and get ready.” Wonder Woman handed Robin a black robe and ushered her into the back room.  
“Okay, Lala, you got this,” she whispered to herself, “just another mission.” Of course, it wasn’t. This wasn’t some routine Gotham petty crime, or a grandiose performance put on by a bigtime villain. She was in space. With the Justice League. On her way to save ten billion people.  
Fuck.  
She got dressed and quietly crept back into the cockpit and settled back into her seat, much to Flash’s shock.  
“Shit, I didn’t even hear you come back. Hey.”  
“Hi.” She tucked her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, making herself look like a gremlin child. She’d fit in perfectly. Batman cleared his throat and turned to face Robin.  
“We’re here. Don’t die or I’ll have to drag you to my ex-girlfriend’s house and that’s an experience I don’t want to have.”  
“What?”  
“She can raise the dead.”  
“Oh.” She put that away in her ‘what the fuck’ file and ignored the big question nagging in her chest as she floated through the vacuum of space towards the giant ship full of aliens who wanted her dead. Yeah. Weird. She was surrounded by creatures draped in the same black robes as her, and managed to slip through the crowd with little problem, creeping through hallways and air vents until she couldn’t avoid a fight anymore. So she beat them up. The air was heavy and humid as she approached the center of the ship. God, why did it smell so bad? And why the hell was it so cold? She could already see her fingers turning blue, which set off a few alarm bells. There was an awful tugging sensation in Robin’s stomach as she got closer to where Morzal was supposed to be, so she dialed up Batman. There was nothing but static. Fuck. She was alone, and for a brief second, she considered turning back. “No,” she whispered, “people need me. Batman needs me.” And so she broke down the door and prepared for a fight.

The first thing she realized was that the room was freezing, more so than the rest of the ship. Damp. Vaguely reminded her of a swamp.  
“You must be Robin.” She pulled the electric baton from her utility belt and pointed it at her company. Morzal was at least 20x uglier than she expected. You ever coughed really hard into a tissue and made the mistake of looking at it? Yeah. That. But, like, the size of a car, and with eyeballs.  
“Oh fuck.”  
“Now what would your master think of that?” She swung at him and felt her fingers brush against his...plasma...? Whatever, she could levitate him now. “Oh Robin, don’t even bother.” Or not. What the fuck was this guy made of?  
“Shit, you’re liquid.”  
“I didn’t realize I was facing off against the smart Robin.” She really didn’t like this guy’s tone.  
“Hey, I’m plenty smart! Honour roll student here spit-goblin.” She clambered up the walls to escape his swirling tendrils, and tried to call Batman again.  
“Don’t waste your time, sweetie, he’s being taken care of as we speak.” If he was trying to get a rise out of her, it was working. God, Lala needed to think fast, and that would be a hell of a lot easier if this goddamn room didn’t stink worse than her lab rooms at school-  
Wait.  
OH FUCK SHE KNEW THIS SMELL! Advanced Science, she’d taken a course in it the year before. This thing was made of sulfur, at least partially, and she immediately knew what she could do to get out of here alive. This place was all wet and cold to prevent fires, and she could do something about that. She ripped her cape off and sent as many volts through it as possible with her baton, which really hurt, but she was in the middle of something and she wasn’t going to screw this up over some electrical burns and muscle spasms. Finally, it ignited, and her opponent melted into the corner. “No, no, you wouldn’t kill me! You’re Batman’s kid, the reformed assassin, you don’t kill! Please, please don’t kill me!” She draped her flaming cape over him and rushed out as soon as possible, leaving behind the sickening smell of burning sulfur and trying to outrun the flames. It felt weirdly familiar, to have the fire chasing her once again. It felt even more familiar when she climbed into the Bat Plane and came face to face with a very angry Batman.  
“Lydia, what the hell were you doing?”  
“I-”  
“Actually, no, I don’t want to hear it. That was the single dumbest thing I’ve ever seen a Robin do. You set an entire spaceship on fire?”  
“Becau-”  
“Don’t interrupt me, we had everything under control, we’re the Justice League! Our job is to save people and yours is to do what I say, got it?”  
“...Got it. Can I ask one question though?”  
“Fine.”  
“If your ex can raise the dead, then why didn’t you resurrect your son?” It was immediately clear that she’d said the wrong thing.  
“Couldn’t find a body.” That was the end of that. She returned to her room in the ship and opened her phone, only to confirm her worst fear. Batwoman and Batgirl were gone.


	5. Chapter 5

No one noticed that Lala had been missing for two weeks. She was hardly surprised. Her family’s graves were completely bare when she visited them after she returned, serving as a cruel reminder that her life was in a downward spiral. She could barely remember her family, but she was sure they'd have noticed the electrical burns and broken arm, maybe they'd even acknowledge them. Wonder Woman quietly patched her up on the ride home, but that was it in the way of medical attention. At least one good thing came from it. Pokemon. She spent a lot of free time on her DS, trying to catch them all, and some kids from school even thought it was cool. Not enough to make friends with her, though. Oh well, who needs friends when you're the co-defender of Gotham anyway? She'd made one friend that way, actually, and was preparing for a mission with him.  
"Hi Jon."  
"Hey Lala!" Jon Kent, or Superboy, had flown up to the skyline of Gotham, and was excitedly asking questions which she didn't know the answer to. "So, what are we up to?"  
"Patrol, same as last time. Freight Street is supposed to be rowdy tonight, but nothing we can't handle." So they glided over the city, watching out for the little people, just as they were supposed to do. Superman had been incredibly firm in telling Robin to go easy on Superboy, which made her realize that not all heroes shoved children straight into the battlefield. The thought gave her whiplash, and she shoved it out of her mind immediately.  
"Hey Robin, there's a mugging just over there, mind if I deal with it?"  
"Knock yourself out buddy." He nearly did. Multiple times. Still, between muggings, brawls, and drug deals, the night was pretty uneventful, and the pair found some time to sit down and breathe.  
"Tonight's been fun, huh?"  
"Sure had. Thanks for joining me, Jon, it's nice having you around."  
"You too Da-uh, I mean Lala." His face went red and he buried his head in his hands. "I'm sorry, it completely slipped my mind."  
"It’s okay. You're not the first." She took a swig from her water bottle and fiddled with an old police radio to see if anything was going on. Nothing. "Hey, can I ask a question?" Jon seemed surprised, but nodded. "What was that Damian guy like?" He sighed and turned his face away.  
"Brilliant. Terrifying. Rude. Nice once you got to know him, but reserved. A bit stuck up if you ask me. Why?"  
"No one talks about him, especially not to me. I wanted to know what kind of shoes I had to fill, not just as Robin, but as Lala." He suddenly developed an interest in his shoelaces, and she decided to drop the subject. Thankfully, the crackle of a police report shook them out of their somber thoughts. "That's two miles west, let's go."  
"Coming." She relished in the feeling of flinging herself off of a gargoyle and rushing through the city towards danger, victory, and validation.

"So," she shuffled awkwardly under Red Robin's stare, "what did you need?" He remained chillingly silent as he passed her a file, not breaking eye contact for a second. She flipped through the pages, skin growing hotter. "Human trafficking ring? Yep, can do-"  
"No you can't. That's why you're here." He snatched the file back, vigorously pointing out certain phrases. "Level nine threat? Seven months of failed infiltration attempts? This is textbook dangerous, Lydia, no two ways about it. Bruce wants you to try and get inside the inner rings, something Barbara and Kate would have struggled to do."   
"And?"  
"And? That's all you have to say? Bruce is handing you impossible tasks one after the other and you're just…fine with it?" She fidgeted awkwardly with her hands, refusing to meet his eyes.  
"Well, yeah. That's Robin's job, right? You know," she took a seat and removed her mask, "even if the danger did bother me, I'd do it. This is all I have to live for, Red, and that means I'll do anything to keep it." He threw his file on the floor, tearing at his hair.  
"What the fuck do you mean? Don't you have a family? Aspirations?"  
"Tim, do you really think I could do all this if my family took any notice of me? I'm alone. It may as well be just me in that apartment, I buy my own food, my own clothes, I don't get taken to all their parties and shit, and that's how it's been for seven years. Don't come in here and judge my decisions. I made them myself." As soon as the first words stumbled out, she knew she should shut up, but the words just kept coming and eventually she had told this guy who she didn’t know all that well about her abandonment issues and fears of becoming useless and unnoticed again. Tim stood there for a moment, just processing what Lala had said.  
“What?”  
“You heard what I said. I’m alone. This is my life, and you’re gonna have to pry this out of my cold, dead hands.” The pair were silent for a while, and Tim ended up ruffling Lala’s hair in the same way her father once did it.  
“Okay. Okay, I’m sorry. Go home, go to bed, take care Lala.” He left the Bat Cave and she closed her eyes and tried to choke back her tears. It took less than five minutes for Red Robin and Signal to disappear from her phone.

“If you can guess the answer to my riddle, I’ll release the hostages! Think fast, Robin, they’re counting on you.” Holy shit. Holy motherfucking shit. Physical battles she could handle any day, but a riddle? Who did this guy think he was talking to? “Riddle me this: what is right twice a day and wrong eighty-six thousand, three hundred and ninety-eight times a day?”  
“You’re kidding me, right? I’ve already solved two of your riddles and I honestly expected more, I thought you were the Riddler, not some C-list jackass. A broken clock.”  
“Ohohoho, Robin, you’re too good! Alright, alright, I’m impressed. Take me away, Copper!” She released the hostages as the police handcuffed the Riddler.  
“Alright, if everything’s clear here, I have to go-”  
“Hold on a second please, Robin.” A greying man with glasses placed a hand on her shoulder. “A word?”  
“Of course.”  
“My name is commissioner James Gordon, head of the GCPD. I was wondering what’s happening with Gotham’s other vigilantes. You’ve been alone out here for weeks.” His words were relatively harmless, but she could see what he was thinking. It was written all over his face. He was worried about her, he’d probably figured out pretty easily that she was a literal child, and she felt uncomfortable knowing that she was worrying people.  
“There’s been a bit of a fallout. It’s just me and Batman now, I’m afraid, and he’s completely beside himself. Even more paranoid than usual. He’d probably have me in a padded cell if I wasn’t adamant.” Batman had told her to speak more like an adult when she was with the authorities, but it made her uncomfortable. The commissioner clearly felt the same.  
“Right...is everything under control? Are you alright?”  
“One hundred percent, mister commissioner sir! I’ve got this!” He seemed skeptical, but let go of her finally.  
“Okay. Well, I won’t keep you any longer. Have a nice evening.”  
“You too, sir.” She fluttered towards her house and slipped into her room without any disturbances, peeling off her uniform and running over her lies as she stared down at her body. Her ribs jutted out through her skin, which was patchy with burns and scars. She was paler than usual, frail-looking, and for a moment she wondered if it was worth it. Of course it was! She was Robin, for god’s sake! What an honour it was to be chosen as Batman’s second in command, his right-hand woman, his sidekick! She smiled, laughed, and threw up all over the floor. “Fuck.” The night didn’t get much better from there, between lying awake until school and having to actually go. She was immediately taken to the counselor’s office.  
“Are you being abused?” No. “Are you involved in drugs, alcohol, or gang activity?” No. “Are you okay?” Sure. She’d missed eight days of school in the last fortnight, and the school was beginning to suspect some kind of problems going on in Lala’s life. They didn’t know the half of it. But the worst part by far was walking past the newspaper stand and finding out that Bruce Wayne’s engagement to Selina Kyle had been canceled.

Lala way beyond out of breath. Her feet were aching unlike anything she could remember, her head was pounding with the effort of holding back her tears, and her heart was trying to pound and break at the same time. God, why did the cave have to be so far away? It would have been easier if she didn’t have to pass through the center of Gotham to get there, and she launched herself in the sky as soon as possible. Her uniform lay abandoned in her room, along with her phone, her weapons, and her will to live.  
“BRUCE!” She nearly tore the door to Wayne Manor off of its hinges, barrelling towards the cave entrance. “BRUCE FUCKING WAYNE, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!” That morning, when she opened her phone, she checked her contacts out of meticulous habit. It had two words. ‘Add Contact’. There was a voice recording on the computer, bright blue and waiting to be heard. She slammed the play button and closed her eyes, willing away her tears.  
“Robin...Lala...I’m sorry I let you down. I focused on me, on my problems, and I didn’t even take a moment to consider you, so I’m doing that now. Alfred left. My father...god. He had a major emergency and will be gone for at least six months. I’ll be back when he is. Until then, my money card should be next to you, the number is seven nine three three. You’ve earned whatever you decide to buy with it, whether you continue being a vigilante or retire. I hope I’ll see you again, and that I can make things up to you. Take care of yourself, and make sure Gotham comes second. Goodbye, Lala.”  
“NO! Bruce, you can’t leave me too! Please!” She didn’t get an answer. She screamed for a while. She broke something that would probably cost an arm and a leg, she used a few choice words that Aunt Marigold would have slapped her for uttering, and then she took a nap on the floor. Remember kids, always cry and take a nap before making any rash decisions, you’ll be happy you did. It wasn’t until Lala was awakened by the thumping of small feet and a slobbery tongue to the face that she decided to get her shit together.  
“Eugh! What the-oh!” Batman’s great Dane, Titus, was sitting beside her expectantly. “Hey Titus. Oh, you’re hungry? Me too.” She pushed herself up, pocketing Bruce’s money card and walking up to the manor kitchen. “Would Alfred keep the dog food in the regular fridge? No way, right? Oh, here, dog biscuits. Eat up, buddy.” She made herself a ham and cheese sandwich and thought her situation through. Her options looked like this:  
Go home and stop being a hero. No.  
Go home and continue being a hero. Absolutely not.  
Stay here and stop being a hero. She’d honestly rather die. That left only one choice. “Well, Titus, I guess I’m moving in.” It didn’t take long for her to go get her stuff, and she set up a pseudo-bedroom in the living room, with blankets draped over the chairs to form a fort and a few cushions and a comforter on the floor. “Home sweet home.” Next up, she had to face a cold, hard truth. She was the only person in Gotham who could take up the mantle of Batman, the one person the city really needed. Robin was cool, but Batman could strike fear into the hearts of the worst criminals. “Hey buddy, wanna help me make my new suit?”  
“Borf.”  
“Nice.” She swallowed her feelings and headed down to the cave, working out how to revamp a Batsuit to suit her own needs. No way was she gonna wear a Batgirl or Batwoman suit, they were way too sexualized for her, and she ended up sticking with her old Robin design with a few upgrades. That would work just fine. She milled around the house, meeting the other pets (who the hell decided owning this many was a good idea?), memorizing floor plans, and by nightfall she was being followed by two dogs, a cat, and a turkey, as well as a cow mooing loudly at her from outside. “Okay, you’ve been fed, I gotta go. Villains and stuff, you know? Yeah yeah, I’ll see you later.” She locked the entrance to the Batcave behind her and turned to face what was now technically hers. “Alright, Batmobile, let's go.”


	6. Chapter 6

ROBIN: SAVIOR OR SINNER?  
Lala tried not to laugh as she read over the headline. The city had started to realize that she was all they had, but didn’t respect it at all. She skimmed through the article which highlighted her wicked deeds, such as, get this, lollygagging. Oh, and it got better. It was written by Lois Lane and edited by Clark Kent, who she had had lunch with mere days earlier. She'd been in close contact with the family since Bruce's disappearance, two and a half months ago. She could tell that Lois was trying to be nice while also not compromising her career, which she greatly appreciated. Speaking of the Kents, she promised to check in with them every now and then, so she picked up her phone and left a message on the answering machine.  
“Hey guys, it’s just Lala checking in. I’m fine, eating and sleeping and everything. Cool, well, see you later.” Seconds passed before she got a call back, and she immediately felt dread settle in her stomach. “Hello?”  
“Lala, I need your help. Justice League stuff. I’m sending your bat computer a file, can you analyze it and send it back?”  
“Uh...sure?”  
“Thanks-"  
"Lala! How are you, are you taking care of yourself?" Lois herself grabbed the receiver from Clark, interrupting Superman himself mid-sentence.  
"Hi Lois, I'm all good, don't worry. I saw your article. Lollygagging, huh?"  
"Yeah, sorry about that kid."  
"Don't worry about it, you gotta do what you gotta do. Just make me sound cooler next time. How's Jon?" She went silent for a second.  
"Tired. He misses Damian. It's like having the bandaid ripped off all over again now that Bruce is gone."  
"Tell him I say hi, okay?"  
"...Okay." They hung up and left Lala to try and work out how to analyze whatever Clark sent her. It seemed like a coded message, and Lala fiddled with the computer until she found an application that would do the job for her.  
"Bruce, you did it again." And there, in the middle of the Batcave, under dim lights and historic keepsakes and with her predecessors watching over her from God knows where, she felt whole again for the first time since she first leaped out of the Batmobile. "Oh man, Bruce's music folder! Let's see…" Kendrick Lamar. Eminem. The Beatles. Nicki Minaj. Mozart. She had a sneaking suspicion that the music folder might have been shared. She listened to it anyway, knowing somebody would probably have been disappointed about her skipping the tracks about juicy asses and non-stop piano music that went on for over half an hour. "Oh mister Big Bad, you really think you can outsmart the Justice League?" She tried to ignore the heavy implications that sentence held and sent Clark the decoded message. 'Three days until Armageddon'. "Oh. Fuck."

Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and everyone in between were seated around a ping pong table trying to make a plan.  
"We could…"  
"I mean…"  
"Oh, let's just say what we're all thinking," said Green Lantern, "if Batman was here he would have dozens of contingency plans. We needed him, and now he's gone." Lala clenched her fists and tried not to cry. Yeah yeah, she knew she wasn't an ideal candidate for his successor, but she was the only one left. And then, under the gazes of each superhero they could get, ranging from pitiful to resentful, things got even worse.  
"We're here!" In they came. Batwoman, Batgirl, Red Robin, Nightwing, all of them one after the other. "We made it, we're here to help!" No one paid her any more attention, and she quietly slipped into the background throughout the meeting, and the heroes who had already given up on heroism began to speak louder. Now, who was she to question the actions of her superiors? She was the one that stuck around. The one who Bruce left his last message to, the one who took up the position of sole vigilante after he took off, the only one who'd done anything in the last two months. So she left, without drawing any attention to herself, to create a plan by herself. It took the others twenty minutes to realize she was gone, and it was Red Robin who turned to ask her opinion.  
"Oh great, she's gone." The room began to simmer, anyone who knew her well enough began to panic.  
"Well," said Jason, "we didn't really need her here."  
"She's the only person left who can access the Batcave jackass. You know what's in the Batcave? Everything. How are we going to get anything done without Bruce's technology?"   
"Well, we should have paid more attention to what she was trying to say then," said Superman, "she was indispensable. Let's see if we can find her."

Highway to Hell was blaring at a volume that really should have made Lala deaf. She should have been taking a break considering the fact that she’d planned how to defeat the apocalypse less than a week earlier, having been convinced by Clark to send a plan to the Justice League. She wasn’t allowed to come, though. Darkseid, the Joker, Lex Luthor, everyone was in on it, and there was no way she could do this alone. God, she wished Bruce was still here. Green Lantern was right, he would have a plan, but Bruce wasn't coming, so she was the one in charge of Bat Business. She drew her hands through her hair, fixing the tangles and muttering to herself. She'd been at the computer for eight hours and reminded herself to take a break. Ten minutes was long enough for a sandwich and a drink of water, and sleep could wait, but not enough to brush her hair well enough to bother with the act. She still tried. A searing pain rushed through her scalp and she cried out, cursing.  
"Goddammit!" She tore the draws from their chests, spilling the contents all over the floor and picking through it for a pair of scissors, chopping her own hair and shrieking. As soon as she saw her own reflection, she regretted her actions. It was hideous. Utterly atrocious, and she wasted more time trying to fix it until she looked a little less like a rat. "Fan fucking tastic." She sat back down, and proceeded with the report. This left her time to sift through her mail and take a nap once she finished writing it up and sending it to Wonder Woman. Of course, after listening to a series of voicemails, she ended up having to postpone the nap. Again.   
"Bruce, it's Talia. Damian has been resurrected and is waiting in the Himalayas for you. I'd recommend hurrying, he has no supplies, and even Damian has a limit." Fuck. Holy. Fucking. Shit. That was Bruce's son, his flesh and blood. Lala wasted no time in packing a bag of supplies and jumping into the Batwing, punching in the coordinates that had accompanied the message. Would Damian bring the others back for good? Would she be forced out of the position she'd barely managed to cling to? Who knew? All she knew was that she had to get that damn kid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad you're still reading! Feedback and constructive criticism is appreciated!


	7. Chapter 7

Three hours later, she crashed straight into the side of a mountain. It was almost comical, a big puff of white surrounded the Batwing, and the noise nearly made her laugh. She couldn't, of course, because she was in an ungodly amount of pain. That pain rushed out of her almost immediately, though, when a small boy wearing nothing but white cotton underwear came rushing over to her.  
"Father, finally, what took you so-who are you?"  
"Oh, uh, I'm Lydia French, but you can call me Lala. I'm looking for Damian Wayne. I assume that's you?"  
"What business do you have?"  
"Well, his dad kind of disappeared, and I'm trying to find Damian because I've taken over the Gotham vigilante scene because I was Robin after Damian disappeared and now all the others are gone so I'm kind of in charge and I'm the only one who can get-"  
"Cut to the chase, harlot." What? What did he just call her?  
"Woah, alright shortstack, what's your problem?"  
"Oh, just shut up. Let's go back to Gotham. Don't even try to fight me, I'm a master of every martial art known to man." He jumped into the Batwing beside Lala, inspecting the damage. "It should take me about seven hours to repair the damage so we can get in the air again, did you bring any tools?"  
"Don't bother, I've got this." Lala cracked her knuckles and slammed her hands against the dashboard, effectively becoming the engine and navigation system. "Welcome, Damian and Lala, to flight H three P four from the Himalayas to Gotham city. Please take a seat, buckle up, and enjoy the flight." Damian didn't laugh. "There's food, water, clothes, and medical supplies in the back if you need them." She could have sworn he said thank you, but he'd never admit it. They began to make their way over Asia, and she pointed out everything she saw. “Oh wow, we’re over Myanmar, right? It’s gorgeous.”   
“Will you shut up?”  
“Will you have a little bit of goddamn motherfucking respect? I’m trying to help you here.”  
“I don’t understand why someone else couldn’t have done it.” She scowled, gripping the dashboard tighter.   
“Did you pay any attention to what I was trying to tell you? There is no one else. Bruce has been missing for two months. Jason, Tim, Cassandra, and all them? They’ve dropped off the map to do normal things. Haven’t seen them in over a month. I’m the only one left.”  
“And who are you?”  
“I’m Lala, but Gotham calls me Robin.” That was clearly the wrong thing to say.  
“I’m Robin.”  
“You haven’t been Robin in almost eight months. I’m Gotham’s sole vigilante, have been for two and a half months, and before you ask, your dad put me in charge.” With her jaw clenched tight enough to chip a tooth, she forced the jet to go faster, prompting Damian to clutch the seat in fear until they touched down. “Here we go. Out.” She hit the eject button and smiled as her new companion hit the ceiling. She jumped out and landed on her feet, storming out of the Batcave and spotting Titus, asleep on the floor. “Hey boy!” His tail thumped against the floorboards and he bounded over to her. “Yeah, it’s good to see you too! You okay? Yeah?” She rubbed his belly and headed into the kitchen, pulling the bread and butter from the cupboard. A ham sandwich was in order. Lala sat on the floor, next to the dog, and ate her sandwich as Damian crept into the room.  
“Well, I don’t think you need to stick around anymore. You can go home now.”  
“I live here.”  
“...you have got to be fucking kidding me.” Instead of pushing the subject, he prepared a bowl of cereal and headed upstairs, leaving Lala to contact the other vigilantes, informing them that Robin had come home. It took all of seven minutes for Dick to break down the door, crying. Word traveled fast among the heroes.  
“Where’s Damian? Where is he?”  
“Upstairs. In his room.” By the end of the day, the entire family as well as the Kents, were in the house, all of them sat in Damian’s sitting room and fawned over him. Lala understood, of course, he’d been dead for eight months and they wanted to see him. She tried not to feel jealous, until Bruce his goddamn motherfucking self walked straight past her. He didn’t even go upstairs, no, he went to the kitchen and pulled out a packet of oreos.  
“Hey, Bruce. Everything okay? You seen Dam-”  
“Go home, Lydia. Don’t bother coming back.” Of all the things she expected that day, from an immediate terrorist attack to a full mental breakdown, this was the last thing she’d have guessed would happen.  
“What?”  
“What, what do you mean what? Are you deaf or just stupid? Go home.” Her heart was pounding so fast that she thought she’d died, gone to hell, and been stuck in a meat grinder. She didn’t even have the guts to say anything. Instead, she headed to the living room and packed up her stuff, relying purely on muscle memory to navigate her way through Gotham, towards wherever her legs were taking her. Eventually, she arrived at the one place she still felt safe. She plucked a few sprigs of lavender from a nearby bush and knelt in front of her siblings’ grave.  
“Hi Sadie, hi Jack. I’m sorry I haven’t visited lately. I’ve been sort of busy. How are you guys?” She didn’t get an answer. “I wonder...would you guys be proud of me? You and mom and dad...you guys wouldn’t leave me like the others, right? You…” the words caught in her throat, and she began to cry. “Of course not. I’m sorry. I’m going to visit mom and dad now. Take care, I love you.” She rose to her feet and headed to her parents, placing the flowers on their headstone. God, what would they think? What would her parents say if they saw their oldest daughter now, alone and pathetic. What was that thing her old teacher used to say? "You have to look out for yourself first." Yeah, that was it. Lala tried to think of a way to look out for herself, just as Miss Robinson used to say. There wasn't a lot she could do. Vigilantism wasn't exactly a high earning profession, and she wasn't thrilled at the idea of heading into a home, or worse. Soon enough, after painful hours of thinking, she realized the only thing that could help her now. Of course, that was before someone smacked her on the back of the head with a bat and she blacked out.

Bruce was a complete and utter wreck. He was exhausted, hungry, and angry, and it didn’t take him too long to realize it was super rude of him to kick her out. Eventually, after a lot of yelling from Tim, Bruce pulled his suit on and headed over to the apartment where he met her in the first place. He crept through the sliding balcony door and headed through the place, looking for Lala’s room. It was a really nice apartment, uptown, with plush furniture and expensive appliances. Down the hall, there were three rooms side by side, each with a name on the door. Ophelia was written in gold, Claudius was in black, and a piece of paper was blue tacked to the last one. Lala’s room. He opened the door and froze, seeing nothing but a bed and a cardboard box. No decorations, no clothes, nothing. He stepped back and checked the other two rooms. Claudius’ room had a slide coming down from his bed, and Ophelia’s was in a goddamn castle.  
“Batman?” He turned and saw a middle-aged man standing in the doorway, eyes wide with excitement. “What are you doing here?”  
“Where’s your daughter?”  
“Ophelia’s-”  
“Lala.” The man furrowed his eyebrows and folded his arms.  
“She’s not my daughter. She’s my niece, and she doesn’t live here anymore. Hasn’t in months. Why, what’d she do?” She hadn’t been there in months. She was gone. Had she been staying in the manor? Had he kicked her out of her house?  
“Where is she?”  
“No idea, but-” Bruce flung himself out of the nearest window and took off down the streets, yelling out for her.  
“ROBIN! ROBIN, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?” He called her watch, but it was answered by Tim, who said that she’d left it there.   
“You really screwed up again, huh Bruce?”  
“Shut up, were you aware that she’d been living in the manor since I left?”  
“I have seen her exactly once since I left, Bruce, we aren’t exactly best friends. God, Jason’s been talking shit about her for hours, it’s the most I’ve ever seen him and Damian bond.” Bruce huffed, hanging up without another word. Three weeks ended up passing by before anyone heard from or saw her. It was a major issue, since the last few months had clearly brought some stronger villains into the spotlight, ones who were used to heroes with superpowers. The vigilantes were drowning in crime.  
“Bruce,” said Dick, “we’ve got a report of a bomb threat by the Joker in central Gotham, you wanna take Damian and check it out?” At least that was still the same.  
“On it.” Batman and Robin sat in the Batmobile and weaved through traffic, and Robin was slouched back in his seat, sending a pang through Batman’s heart. He’d had a lot of black-haired teens in the passenger seat, and he’d lost all of them a few times. It just so happened that the latest misplaced Robin was probably a little screwed. The pair arrived at the crime scene in mere minutes, leaping out ready for a fight.  
“Oh, thank god! Batman, I was getting lonely without you!” The clown himself sat atop a pile of cars, covered in dynamite, and the vigilantes attacked, only to be pinned to the ground from behind. Batman tried to get to his feet, but couldn’t move at all. One glance at Robin told him that they’d both been hit. The sensation reminded him chillingly of old training sessions, and it made sense almost immediately. Lala. “Batsy, whaddya think of my new friend? I found her crying her eyeballs out next to her parents’ grave! Smiley, let him move a little more, I want him to see your face!” He lifted his head off the ground just a bit, and saw the kid who’d given him her umbrella almost a year earlier. She’d grown since then. Her hair was dark green, and she wore a purple blazer and skirt over green tights and a t-shirt. There was a smiley face tie around her neck that looked like it was strangling her, and her face was covered in makeup. The worst part, however, was when he saw her eyes. Her pupils were blown wide. The more he looked at her, the worse he felt. Blown pupils, buckets of sweat, tremors, weak knees. She was drugged. Just about every part of him felt sick at the realization that Lala, strong, lively Lala had been reduced to this, but there was one fleeting ounce of joy that she was alive, and that maybe she wasn’t willing to hurt them while sober. Backup was close behind, and Red Robin dropped off a nearby roof, while Nightwing flipped through the streets. Red Robin ran straight at Lala, and swung his bo staff at her head, which was immediately torn out of his hand and hurled into the sky. He stared at her, and a dawning look covered his face.  
“Lala? Holy shit, Lala! Batman, she’s high out of her mind. I-”  
“Tim…” her voice was too quiet for anyone to hear except for him, and he took her hand.  
“Yeah?”  
“I wanna go home...pleAAH!” She lashed out at him, dragging her fingers across his face, leaving him pinned to the ground, before turning to Nightwing. He hurled a javelin at her, and she wrenched it out of the air, snapping it over her knee. He grabbed her, leaving himself open for an attack, and he ended up on the ground next to his brother. Lala lifted the javelin and went to plunge it into Nightwing’s throat, but she was stopped by a gunshot to the shoulder. “AAAAAGH! FUCK!”  
“Lydia, you need to calm down. It’s just a bad trip, you’ll be back to normal soon enough.”  
“YOU SHOT ME!” Jason stepped out of the shadows, gun brandished.  
“Yeah, I did. It’s just a BB gun, so don’t worry about it too much. You nearly killed someone. I know I give you shit, but you’re not a killer, Lydia...Lala.”  
“You don’t know who the hell I am, you fucking asshole! I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO I AM! AND THAT'S YOUR FUCKING FAULT!” She ripped a street lamp clean out of the pavement, and hurled it at him, just as more heroes arrived. Batgirl, Bat Woman, Spoiler, Black Bat, and Signal rushed into the fray. Batgirl helped the boys off the ground, while the others rushed to capture the Joker, and Jason caught the street lamp.  
“Listen, kid, it’s killing me to say this, but it ain’t your fault. Red over there’s been through the same thing. You need to stop.” He approached her, hands raised in surrender, until he was close enough to take her hands. Lala’s shoulders sagged, and she dropped to her knees. "You okay?"  
“I wanna go home.”  
“I know.”  
“I wanna kill you.”  
“That’s the LSD. It’ll wear off soon. You leave the Joker to the others, and let the guys get up. I’ll take you to the Batcave and get you sober.”  
“...Okay.” Jason walked up to her, and lifted her over his shoulder. He sat her in front of him on the motorbike, and wrapped an arm around her torso before heading towards the Batcave.


	8. Chapter 8

After Lala was stolen from her parents’ gravesite, she woke up surrounded in darkness. She was in a body bag, and the body bag was in a cage. Her kidnapper had clearly put some real effort into making sure she didn’t leave. She writhed, screaming and forcing the bag off the ground. They hit the ceiling, and she tried to increase her personal gravity to escape the bag itself, but was stopped by the feeling of a needle being stuck into her leg. A fluid was injected into her, and she wailed before hitting the ground.  
“FUCK!”  
“Watch your tongue, little girl, or you’ll end up in a much worse position.” The voice gave her chills, although that may have been the injection.  
“Who...oh fuck…” She felt amazing, and it forced her into the realization that the drug was heroin. She was on heroin. That was fucking terrifying. “GET OFF OF ME!” She hurled herself off of the floor, and tried to find a blind escape, until her brain began to stall, and she let herself lay down. It took eight shots of heroin over the course of three days to get her to stop fighting back. That was the first time she experienced physical torture. The first day was waterboarding. She was still in the body bag, but her feet were tied to the ceiling and she was dunked into the tub for two minutes at a time. Then there was force-feeding, sleep deprivation, an iron maiden that was crafted so that she could survive by standing on her tiptoes and not leaning, kind of like in Matilda. The worst by far, though, was the electric chair. Nothing could compare to that. But the Joker told her that, if she obeyed, she’d get another hit. That was all she wanted at that point. The LSD he gave her was okay, but the heroin had her hooked. Some part of her, which still considered itself Robin, begged her to stop chasing the high, but she was too far gone to help herself. She’d have done anything for another fix. Looking back on it, she felt sick that she’d let herself become so twisted and desperate. She sat there, in front of Jason, and fought the urge to gouge his eyes out. He’s...well, not a friend, but an ally. On the other hand, he did shoot her. That shot, though, it made her realize that she’d actually lost it. That wasn’t a pleasant feeling. He was muttering from behind her, clearly pissed off.  
“Dammit, guess I’m just as bad as the old man now.” She had no idea what he meant, and didn’t really care, since she was beginning to shake violently. “Woah, kid, what’s going on?” She was freezing, in more pain than ever, and she was on the verge of a full breakdown. “Don’t worry, we’re almost there. You’re gonna be okay.”  
“I hate him.”  
“Clown or old man?”  
“Yeah.” Jason stifled a laugh and drove faster, relief flooding him as the manor came into view.  
“Here we go, I’m gonna get you some water and food, and you need to sleep.”  
“...okay.” She clung to his arms as she came down from the high, and he picked her up to carry her into the Batcave.

"Alright, doctor Jason is prescribing Ensure, it’s a drink you’re supposed to have if you haven’t eaten in a while. Stay here while I go get it. If you move, I'll kick your ass."

"Of course." Lala lay her head in her arms and took in the room. It hadn't changed, except for the glass display case which showed off her old uniform, with the caption "Robin: September 28-June 17." Part of her felt prideful at the thought of being Robin. Another part felt spiteful, angry at the fact that her position was ripped from her as soon as she brought Damian back. She didn't have time to brood, though, as Titus came barreling right at her. "Hey buddy! Miss me? Aw man, have they been taking good care of my boy? How's Ace?" She felt her shoulders sag as the high deteriorated, and exhaustion settled into her bones.

“Hey Lala, I’ve got the food. Oh, hey Titus.” He placed a glass of purple liquid in front of her and she downed it in one go, before wiping her face.

“Oh God that was good.”

“Shit, you think that’s good? What’s clownface been feeding you?”

“Heroin.” Jason jumped to his feet and grabbed her by the shoulders, eyes wild and angry.  
“HEROIN? HE PUT YOU ON HEROIN?” He grabbed his helmet and gun before running out of the cave towards his motorbike. “THAT’S ONE FUCKING STEP TOO FAR, LALA, YOU STAY HERE AND TAKE A NAP!” She was caught a little off guard by his weird combination of comfort and rage, but she was also too tired to do anything about it. Lala and Titus headed upstairs into the living room and she fell asleep on the couch.

Jason nearly killed the Joker before Bruce, Dick, Tim, Damian, and Cass managed to pry him away from the villain.  
"LET GO OF ME, HE GOT THE KID ON DRUGS!"  
"We're aware of this, Red Hood, but killing him isn't going to help anyone."  
"NO, GET FUCKED! ME, RED ROBIN, NOW ROBIN, YOU'RE REALLY JUST LETTING HIM TORTURE YOUR FUCKING CHILDREN?"  
"Please be reasonable-"  
"NO!" Jason nearly ripped Bruce's hand off, as the others escorted the Joker away.  
"I need you to call down. You don't even like the kid." The sentence sent a disgusting feeling into Jason's stomach. He was right, but that wasn't the point. The kid hadn't done anything wrong, but more importantly, this was the very villain who had killed him, tortured two Robins to insanity, and tormented Gotham relentlessly for an entire decade.  
"Red Robin and I were almost fifteen when we were fucked over by the clown. She is barely thirteen. It's only two years difference, max, but two years is a long time. God...I remember the first time I met her. She was so wide-eyed and excited, just stepping into this shithole we call a night job. She was a natural. I saw her again soon after you disappeared, just in passing. She was practically a skeleton, no life to speak of, plowing through every fight like she was running out of time. It would have made you proud. At least one of us deserves that." Jason wiggled out of Bruce's hold and jumped on his motorbike. "If you decide to take responsibility for the kid you dragged into this, she'll be at the cave. With me." And he rode away, leaving Batman alone in the middle of the street. Jim Gordon walked over and placed a hand on Bruce’s shoulder comfortingly.  
“We’ll take it from here. You should go make sure she’s okay.”  
“She’ll be fine. She’s a fighter-”  
“She’s a child. I’ve seen her, Batman, when she started and when she finished. Red Hood was right. That kid’s running out of fuel and she needs your help, so you get your ass in that car of yours and make sure she’s okay.”  
“God, everyone's pissed at me today.”  
"And rightly so. Go home. Don't even think about leaving." The Commissioner shot him a look, and shooed him away. Finally, Bruce relented, and climbed into the Batmobile. He gripped the wheel tightly, and he was home before he knew it. Part of him wanted to stay there until everyone was either asleep or gone, but he steeled himself to the task of going inside. Sure enough, Jason was sitting in an armchair, watching over a sleeping Lala like a hawk. It was almost endearing, except for the fact that he held a handgun. Whether to protect Lala from others or to protect others from Lala, Bruce didn’t know.  
“The hell are you doing here,” said the younger man, eyes still locked on the girl.  
“I live here.”  
“Whatever, just leave the kid alone.” Bruce glanced at Lala, but knew better than to try to get any closer to her. Jason wouldn’t have let him get close enough to help.  
“Okay.” It took Lala four hours to wake up, and Jason was immediately on his feet.  
“Hey, kid, don’t get up. You need to rest. Do you want some water?”  
“Ha,” she said with a raspy voice, “when did you get so motherly?”  
“When I found out that the clown got to you.” She had no quips, just a fond smile.  
“Thanks.” He poured a drink and handed it to her, and she downed it in one go. She kept dozing off, and Jason watched over her like his life depended on it. Eventually, Bruce walked into the room, and Jason immediately was on full alert.  
"What do you want?"  
"Calm down, I just to know if she's okay." The younger man scowled, folding his arms defensively.  
"She's fine, no thanks to you. I'm not leaving until she's over the addiction, so don't bother asking." Bruce sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration.  
"Jay-"  
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" He slammed his fist on the coffee table, making Lala stir. He calmed down immediately, draping a blanket over the girl. "Hey, you need your rest, everything's okay. Go back to sleep." She grunted and faded away again. "Like I said, I'm sticking around to take care of her since you clearly can't do it. Now her sanity is at stake too."  
"Jason, you know that the fact that I couldn't save you from the Joker is my biggest regret. Now, not being able to keep her safe is up there too. If I kill the Joker-" Jason cut him off, already knowing where this was going.  
"Yeah yeah, you're just as bad as he is. Thousands are dead, one son was murdered, one was driven insane, and your protege is a heroin addict at thirteen because of this, but hey, enjoy your moral high ground." The words were like a slap across the face to Bruce, and a tear threatened to escape his eye.  
"I thought you'd forgiven me."  
"I didn't think you'd make that mistake again. I know I won't."  
"Jay…" Bruce met his son's cold, dead eyes with a newfound sense of guilt. "I...I want you to do it. I want you to kill him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is all there is so far, but there will be more, I promise!


	9. Chapter 9

Jason didn’t have to be asked twice, but he did need to make sure Lala had someone to keep an eye on her. No way was he going to leave her with Bruce. He waited for Tim to get there, since he was the only one who he’d trust to watch out for her while he was gone. Tim arrived just a few hours after Bruce dropped the bomb, and Jason leaped to his feet.  
“Tim, you need to keep an eye on Ly-Lala until I get back. She’s on strict bedrest, drinking Ensure to make up for the last few weeks, and she should be facing withdrawal soon. I’ll talk to her about that.” Jason grabbed his brother’s arm, and dragged him to the living room, where Lala was sitting up clutching a box of tissues, with streams of tears spilling down her face. “Hey, hey kid, what’s wrong?” He sat in front of her, holding on her arm.  
“I dunno, my nose is really runny. Ugh.” She wiped the tears from her face, and Jason ruffled her hair.  
“It’s early withdrawal. You’re probably also gonna experience muscle aches, insomnia, anxiety, and agitation for a few days. After that will be the late withdrawal, with symptoms similar to food poisoning.”  
“Great, this is just peachy. But seriously, thanks, Jason, you’ve been really helpful.”  
“No problem. I have to run out, but Tim’s gonna keep an eye on you. He’s in charge, got it?” Lala stifled a laugh, grinning down at him.  
"Yes mom." He poked her tongue out at her, patting her shoulder.  
"I'll be back before you know it." With that, he left the Batcave, trusting Tim with Lala until he was finished. She pulled the blankets closer, leaning her head against the back of the couch and sighing.  
"Sorry about this, Tim. I should be alright."  
"Don't ’ apologize. You're sick. The Joker did something similar to me years ago, and I could have slept for a week. There wasn't any...you know...heroin involved, though, and I don't actually know what to do."  
"Just don't let me do anything stupid. I'm sorry I attacked you." He took a seat across from her, and gave a small smile.  
"Don't worry about it. You're my friend and you're not well, so I'm not going anywhere. Are you hungry?" She shook her head.  
"No, I'm just in pain. Do you guys have any herbal tea?"  
"I'll get you some peppermint, stay here. Titus, don't let her leave." He pointed his finger at the dog, who wagged his tail approvingly. "Good boy." Tim rushed to the kitchen and left Lala to sit with the dog.  
"Well, boy, it looks like I'm finally making some friends here, huh?" Titus immediately jumped up and bolted towards the hall, with Lala close behind “What’s wrong?” She ended up in the hallway, where Damian was crouched, holding his dog’s collar.  
“Don’t touch my dog. What are you even doing here? Father doesn’t want you here." The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she clenched her fists.  
"Damian," she said through gritted teeth.  
"What, are you going to attack me? Your heroin addiction’s making you violent?"  
"Damian!"  
"I’d be a violent addict too if no one loved m-" wood splintered from the walls, paintings rattled, and furniture began to lift off the floor towards the ceiling.  
"STOP." Lala hurled the wood chips at him like throwing knives, swung the portraits of his ancestors at him like baseball bats, and boarded his exits up with furniture. “Are you out of your fucking mind?” Finally, Bruce himself arrived to break up the fight.  
"Lala, Damian, that's enough!" With just a few words from Bruce, she froze, face contorted with rage, and reluctantly returned the items to their rightful places. "Thank you." The man walked down the stairs with enough caution to not startle her, but enough bravado to keep her from attacking. "Lala, you need to rest and get some vitamins and calories in you. Please go back into the living room and wait for Tim. Damian, come with me. Now." Lala was too tired to deal with fighting Bruce, and headed back to the couch with Titus at her heels. Damian followed his father to the study, looking very similar to a kicked puppy. "Son, I understand that you're upset about her taking your position while you were gone, but there's no reason to behave like this towards her."  
"You replaced me the day of my funeral," he hissed at the older man.  
"I know. I'm sorry, I really am, but I needed the emotional support and sense of stability. That doesn't excuse my behaviour, but I want you to know this." He placed a hand on his son's shoulder, face serious. "This isn't about me or you right now. Lala is sick. She needs my help, and I owe her this much after everything. And trust me, you don’t want to fight a meta-human going through heroin withdrawal. You'll get your ass handed to you. Now, please, don't give the girl any more grief, especially about the drugs."  
"Tt...fine. Can I leave now?"  
"Sure thing." Damian didn't need to be told twice as he strode out of the room with the air of a prince, to the kitchen for a snack. He passed by the living room on the way, and stopped to hear what Tim and Lala were saying.  
"This Ensure stuff tastes like the chalky vitamins I used to take."  
"You'll need to stick to that for a while, but I can talk to Jason about you having cereal and milk tomorrow. Don't get your hopes up, though, he's taking your health very seriously."  
"You guys are the best."  
"Hey, Robins look out for each other. That's the code. We tell each other the truth, we look out for each other, and we get together for burgers every few weeks."  
"Oh man, I'd kill for a burger right now." Damian turned away from their discussion and headed to make himself a veggie burger. That'd teach her.

Jason came back coated in blood and grinning wildly, greeting Tim.  
"You guys alright while I was gone?"  
"Well, Damian pissed Lala off so bad that she nearly destroyed the house, Bruce had to go buy some clothes for her since she doesn't have anything except the outfit Joker gave her, and she just took the longest shower I've ever seen because of how filthy she was, but other than that things are great. You?"  
"I just killed the clown." Tim froze, clutching his mug like it was the only thing keeping him alive.  
"You what?"  
"Killed him. Boom, dead, blood and brains all over the floor. Goodbye Joker!"  
"Bruce is going to be so fucking angry about this!"  
"Relax, he told me to do it." Tim's eyes grew even larger.  
"WHAT?" He grabbed Jason by the shoulders and struggled to find the words to articulate his thoughts. "So…so you're telling me that Bruce actually asked you to kill the Joker? After everything he's done, this was the breaking point?" He nodded enthusiastically, and Tim gaped. "Shit."  
"I can't believe it either, but hey! I'm not complaining."  
"Tim, do you-Jason! You're back!" Lala stood in the doorway in a new dress, looking considerably better than she did when they fought her. The grime was washed from her limbs, she wasn't shaking anymore, and the green dye had faded from her hair.  
"Lala, good to see Tim kept you alive. How are you feeling?"  
"A little better. We watched a tv show called Why Woman Kill, it's really good. How are you?"  
"I've had a weight taken off my chest. Do you guys want to watch a horror movie?" The three of them curled up on the couch to watch the Exorcism of Emily Rose, and Lala would bury her face in a pillow every time something scary happened. "Hey, kid, we can watch something else."  
"No, I like this. It's just scary." Jason snorted, ruffling her hair.  
"Says the girl who killed an alien dictator," Tim said between sips of coffee.  
"That was different!" While the three former Robins watched their movie, the current one watched from the doorframe, drowning in jealousy. He didn't want to be jealous, not of French while Drake and Todd hung out with her, but he couldn't help the hateful feeling in his stomach. The jealousy subsided a bit when she stood up and immediately collapsed.  
"Shit, are you alright?"  
"Hey, Lala, what happened?"  
"Oh god, shit, ugh!" She squeezed her eyes shut while the tears spilled over, and the boys helped her back to the couch. "Fuck, that hurts!"  
"Here, let me get you more tea." Ugh, Damian was jealous of a thirteen-year-old drug addict. That was pathetic. He mulled over his father's words. This girl was sick. From what Drake had told him, French was apparently made an orphan at the age of five, and had been abused and neglected ever since. She all but fended for herself for the last few years. Why should he be jealous? Because his father cared about her. His father cared about the others as well. It was his fault, really. It would take Damian a while to warm to the idea of her, but for now, he needed a truce. He left the hall to raid the medicine cabinet, and found exactly what he needed before cautiously entering into what had become her territory.  
"French." The three of them all turned their attention to the boy, and he screwed his face up, steeling himself to the task ahead. "I have realized it was...unnecessary for me to speak to you the way I did. The blame for the situation at hand does not fall on you. I am offering you this as a truce." He held out in front of him a container of what looked like vaseline. "This is a special joint rub from my mother. If you apply it to areas experiencing pain, it should become more manageable."  
"Wait, hold on one second," Tim said, "you're giving Lala your pain cream? Seriously? You just said two hours ago that you pretty much hated her." Damian stared at him and scowled.  
"...This is father's fault. Not hers. I hate to say it, but I technically have no solid reason for disliking her. Now, do you want it or not?" Jason snatched it from his hands and gave the container to Lala.  
"Thanks, Damian. You're forgiven. Sorry for attacking you."  
"I suppose that was on me. What are you watching?" The four of them settled into their seats and played the movie, in a somewhat comfortable silence.


	10. Chapter 10

Lala sat locked in the bathroom and took long, deep breaths to calm herself.  
“In for eight...hold for five...out for eight,” Jason said through the door, “just keep that up. I’m right here.” He leaned against the wall in the hallway, trying to suppress any unwarranted anxiety in his chest. Tim stood beside him, chewing his nails and trembling.  
"Do you need anything, Lala? A drink or something?"  
"Hhhhh…hold on…” She’d started the late withdrawal phase, and had been in the bathroom for upwards of an hour with intense nausea and anxiety.  
“I’ll get her some more water,” Tim said, desperate to make himself busy. Damian had already brought some water just a little while ago, but it was better than standing there uselessly. Unfortunately, Dick didn't seem to understand the weight of the situation.  
"Listen, I bought all the stuff, we can have burger night here! Good for morale. Lala, what do you think about burgers for dinner?"  
"NOT THE TIME!" She sounded terrible, and Jason grit his teeth.  
"Just hold up, kid, Tim's getting some water. Grayson, will you just wait until we're done here to have this conversation? We can postpone burger night."  
"...Okay."  
"Thank you." Damian wandered down the hall with a special tea he'd made to prevent nausea, and huffed when he saw Dick.  
"Grayson."  
"Damian! We're having burger night here later, I bought some veggie patties!"  
"That's very...thoughtful of you, but French is unwell and it seems like a bad idea to have Robins Night while a Robin is sick." Jason's eyes widened at Damian's words, and he turned to face the boy, who looked completely unfazed. "Don't look so shocked, Todd. French and I may not see eye to eye but I can admit that she was Robin if nothing else."  
"So I'm the only one up for a burger night?"  
"RICHARD SHE'S GONNA FUCKING DIE!"  
"NO I'M NOT, STOP BEING SO DRAMATIC!" Lala swung the door open, scowling and pulling her hair into a ponytail. "Sorry, I shouldn't have yelled. It's just...I...I'm tired. I'm going to bed." She rubbed her eyes and wandered away, stopping to look at the four boys lined up. "I really appreciate what you're all doing for me. I'm just really irritable, and that's not your fault. Goodnight guys." She wrapped her arms around her torso and slipped silently into her new bedroom, which Bruce had arranged a few days prior. The room was blue, her favourite colour, and really comfy. It was situated right between Damian and Jason's rooms, in case she needed them at any point. Lala wouldn't admit it, but she was sort of enjoying being fussed over. She hadn't had anyone to take care of her in years, and it was really nice to know that someone was willing to make sure she was okay. Tim even arranged to have some books that she was interested in put in her room, so she plucked the copy of Fauna of the World from her bookshelf to keep herself occupied. She tucked her knees under her chin and flipped to a page detailing a turtle's skeleton. "...that's not enough bones. Insufficient." Each page showed a new animal, from insects to mammals, in alphabetical order, and she highlighted each part she found interesting. Once she arrived on the lemur page, a knock sounded at her door. "Come in." She'd expected a lot of people. Jason was the most obvious, or maybe Tim or Damian. Duke, Barbara, and Cass had all come and seen her over the last week as well, with regards from anyone who couldn't make it. Even Bruce, who she felt an impressive amount of disdain for at that very moment, would have been preferable to the person who walked in.  
"Lydia, I came to check on you." She leaped to her feet, fists clenched and body tense.  
"Get out." She was completely frozen in place, a panic attack building in her chest.  
"Come on, play time's over." The man stepped forward cautiously, with a hand raised in surrender. "I know you're mad at me, but we have to go home. I promised my brother that I'd take care of you, and I can't do that when you're mucking around with a bunch of rich people. I understand that I haven't been a great father figure. Let's go home, and we can talk about how I can make things right." She couldn't move. She couldn't believe the goddamned nerve of this man. Be reached out and grabbed her shoulder gently, and she found her movement again.  
"GET OUT!" Lala grabbed the lamp from the bedside table and swung it like a bat, hollering with pure rage. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" Her uncle Gary, in all his audacious glory, had come to bring her back home.

Seven and a Half Years Prior

"Gary," Marigold said, "wouldn't it be possible for us to find somewhere else for her to go? Three toddlers are way too much for us."  
"Harold and Isabelle trusted us with their daughter. I can't let my big brother down like that." The pair of them sat in the front of their Mazda, on their way to Gotham City Hospital, with Claudius and Ophelia strapped into their car seats in the back. Gary's brother had died, along with his wife and two young children, leaving a five-year-old girl with no family behind. What was her name...Lucy? No, Lydia. Lydia was waiting for her uncle, and he was nearly there. The man went into the hospital alone once they arrived, and gave his name and ID to an officer. "Can I ask a question?"  
"Shoot."  
"Did…did my brother suffer." The cop was silent, deep in thought.  
"The family died on impact, with the exception of the young girl. It seems that she is in possession of unnatural abilit-"  
"Don't. Don't give me that shit." So the officer shut up. Lydia sat upright in bed, with a bandage around her head and a glazed look. "Lydia French? I'm your uncle Gary. You're gonna come stay with me." She looked up slowly, with an unreadable expression.  
"I wanna go home."  
"Come on then. Let's get going." She was ready to be discharged, and as they walked out, Gary took the girl aside. "There's one rule that I'm gonna tell you now. No using your supernatural abilities or whatever the fuck that is, okay? You gotta act normally. Got it?"  
"Got it."  
"Good." And for a while, things were alright.

Six Months Later

"YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU KNEW? YOU KNEW WE WERE BRINGING A FREAK INTO OUR HOUSE?"  
"Please calm do-"  
"SHE'S BEEN NEAR MY CHILDREN FOR SIX MONTHS! EATING MY FOOD! SHARING A ROOM WITH MY DAUGHTER!"  
"I'm sorry, I just-"  
"NO, THIS ISN'T DEBATABLE!" That day, Marigold had knocked a glass off the table. A relatively normal occurrence for everyone involved, and Lala had done it before. Without thinking too much, as if using muscle memory, she caught the plate and let it sit in mid-air. By the time she remembered the rule it was too late. Marigold had seen it. All hell broke loose. Lala was moved into an old storage closet, and left her nice clothes for her little cousin, Ophelia. She wasn't allowed to go out with the family anymore, couldn't leave her room when the others were home, and ended up holed in her room with a book most nights. Gary would bring her dinner, and that was the extent of their communication.

Four Years Later

Once Lala turned ten, Marigold stopped feeding her.  
"She can buy her own damned food." She already stood out next to her cousins in her second half clothes, while they wore higher and fashion, and now she was considerably thinner than either of them. Claudius was chubby and pranced around in the most expensive crap he was allowed, from top quality 'hype beast' shoes to a real gold chain. Ophelia was dainty, and loved delicate lace dresses that made her look like a ballerina. Lala just looked greasy in her stained second-hand clothes and limp ponytail. One of her teachers had said 'you look like a decent gust could knock you off your feet', and she found that it was the truth, as her weight couldn't keep up with her height, and she was becoming quite gangly. And now, she was expected to feed herself. Initially, Lala had been picking old Chinese takeout and KFC from dumpsters, until Frank found her eating old eggs in the parking lot.  
"Listen, kid, I'll give you five bucks an hour if you wash some dishes for me. Ain't that hard. You can have any leftovers you find, too." And that was as good an offer as any. Frank wasn't exactly her friend, but he gave her what she needed.

And now the fucker who had forced her into that corner, who had said and done nearly nothing to help her since the day she arrived at his goddamned house, was in her room. Her territory. This wasn't even neutral ground, no, he had intruded while she was at her most vulnerable, in her personal space! Of course, this had one perk that she was fully intent on using right here, right now.  
"JASON!" And like the overprotective big brother he'd come to be, he barrelled up the stairs with a handgun and high blood pressure.  
"WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON IN HERE?" In a moment of pure emotion and relief, she wrapped her arms around Jason, buried her face in his jacket, and burst into tears. "Hey, hey, don't cry, it's gonna be okay Lala. Who's this guy?"  
"I'm her uncle, she needs to come home." Jason clenched his empty hand into a fist, but instead of swinging at the man, he held the girl closer.  
"Get out. Now. If you're not out of this house in thirty fucking seconds, I'm gonna cover the carpet in your brains." Gary straightened up, convinced that the other man wouldn't shoot.  
"I'm her legal guardian and adoptive father. I have the authority here."  
"She doesn't want to go with you. Twenty three seconds. Lala, Tim's getting Bruce and Damian from the cave." His hold on her tightened, and her vision blurred from the sheer exhaustion of the last few days. She felt like she was gonna pass out.  
"Lydia Isabelle French, you get away from this man!" He took a confident stride forward, and Jason fired at his feet.  
"DON'T!" Gary jumped away, eyes wide with fear, and finally Tim arrived with backup. None of them were wearing their suits, and didn't look particularly intimidating. Tim was wearing a red sweater that was too big for him, Dick had skin tight pants, and Damian had changed into his pajamas. Still, the feeling of all five Robins side by side against a common enemy was refreshing, and Lala felt so much safer.  
"I need to take Lydia home."  
"Why?" Gary sighed, and lowered his head.  
"CPS is on my back." Jason huffed.  
"They can have you. Get-"  
"They'll take Ophelia and Claudius away." Lala tensed, and Jason ran his fingers through her hair.  
"Whaddya think, kid?"  
"...I...I'm not leaving."   
"You heard the girl. Get out of her room." He leveled his gun to aim right at the man's head, and Gary had no choice. He picked up his feet and backed out of the building, stiff like a board of wood. The five kids stalked after him, until they arrived on the driveway. The man shot one last jeer at his niece.  
"You'll regret it, Lydia."  
"STOP TALKING TO HER!" Jason pulled the trigger again, and the man finally took off with his tail between his legs. "Come on. We're going inside. You need to go to sleep." He gathered the girl in his arms, and she held to the collar of his shirt sobbing. The pair of them wandered up to her room, and he lay her in bed.  
"I'm, huh, I'm sorry Jason!" She was completely inconsolable, soaking his shirt.  
"It's okay, shh, it's okay...it's okay." He sat beside her and held her hand. There was no way he'd be leaving this girl while she needed him. He sat beside her until, finally, sweet sleep wrapped her in its arms and he shrouded her in a blanket. "Goodnight, Lala, sweet dreams." He ruffled her hair and left quietly, only to come face to face with his old man. "The hell do you want?"  
"I'm worried about Lala! Is she okay? Is she hurt?" He sounded desperate, almost sad. The other boys stood at the end of the hall and watched, with matching looks of concern, except for Damian’s blank expression. Duke had come as well, and looked incredibly uncomfortable.  
"She'll be fine after a nap and a meal. Who let that fucker in anyway?"   
"Jaybird, I didn't realize that she didn't want to see her uncle, I'm so sorry," Dick said. “I let him in. I didn’t know about her family-”  
“Don’t do it again. I need to go out for a while, clear my head. Tim, you’re in charge of Lala until I get back. Call me if she needs me.”  
“...Okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank for reading the first chapter! I appreciate feedback a lot. Tags will be updated as chapters are added.


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